Wannabe Muppet..err Mage @AaronDrown & a Cocktail [interview]

Interview & a Recipe time!

I am thinking I may possibly need to order some thoraxine from Canada for poor Mr. Drown… wait, naaa he is just fine the way he is, insane. I mean who else is going to record heavy metal songs in Ethel Merman’s voice? Or wear eyepatches while cooking steak, of course that is for safety only! So, are you ready? Don’t be drinking liquids while reading, you have been warned.

CG –Tweet the book: You are challenged to tweet a synopsis of the book to include your tweet handle, GO!

CG – Introduce yourself to the captive audience that you now have before you. (As in tell us something NOT in your bio, give us a dirty little secret not having or having to do with your writing.

My name is Aaron. (Hi, Aaron.) And when I was five years old I got in a <i>lot</i> of trouble because I used a brick to smash a window pane on the front door of a vacant apartment so my friends and I could use the place as our Batcave. My family lived in base housing in Norfolk, Virginia, at the time, and I had no concept that other families were constantly moving in and out just like us. All I knew is that one morning I went to see if a kid I knew could play, but instead unexpectedly discovered the apartment where he lived was empty. Since obviously no one else wanted it, I claimed the space to aid my fellow crime fighters and me in our never-ending crusade against evil-doers everywhere.

Let that be a statement of my personal dedication to truth and justice.

CG – Is there a genre, other than the one you currently write in, that you wish you could break into?

I once flirted with the idea of getting into greeting cards, but just didn’t have the knack for being sugary and pity at the same time. Sentiments like, “Sorry you’re sick! Hope you didn’t die before this arrived!” don’t spread a sufficient amount of sunshine, apparently.

CG – Hey you could start a new Emo Line for teens and Mid-Life Goth line for us crazy ass adults who do not want to grow up. It would sell like crazy (snickering)

CG – If you were an apprentice to magic, learning the ways such as your protagonist, what would be your main area of focus? Elemental, Telepathy? Destruction, Healing?

Telepathy. Absolutely that. And then I would start a clairaudient streaming service and kazoo music directly into subscribers’ heads.

CG – Kazoo huh? Ummm that explains a lot of things there, Aaron. I swear what do they put in the Seventh Star Press drinking water?

CG – If you could cast one of your works, who would you choose to play your main characters?

I’m loathed to describe the physical appearance of my characters. I prefer to provide the barest minimum so that the reader can do the rest. So, I really don’t have any detailed notions of how the characters in the story look, and I honestly wouldn’t want to pigeonhole anyone else’s conceptions.

But, lest that seem an utter cop-out, I think Elizabeth Olsen would make a good fit for Ennalen, the main antagonist. She’s lovely, and has the same shape of face I imagined when writing the character. More importantly, there’s an awful lot going on behind Ms. Olsen’s eyes, and she’s capable of some wonderfully haunted expressions.

I’d love to see her say through a dead stare, “I’d much rather be the source of my own destruction than allow anyone else the privilege.”

CG – Do you have any vices that you turn to while you are writing (as in what candy / snack food / drink / 80’s hair band you break out in song too when you just cannot figure out the next line to write and that bitch of a muse is off on her own hunt)?

CG – What do you do when you’re not writing? (ie: What festive things do you do for fun? What things do you do when you make yourself have fun, and what is on the top of your list to do when you actually take two days for you (and family)

I love movies, and spend more time devouring them than I should. Not just watching, mind you—studying, dissecting, marvelling and critiquing. I love my two children about the same amount, and try to spend as much time as I can with them having little adventures, discovering new places and things. I also love road trips. Few things are as affecting as a late, orange afternoon with the window down and a highway extended out before you.

Beyond that, I like to sing heavy metal songs like Ethel Merman, and say inappropriate things in my Elmo voice.

Oh no you didn’t!

Oh yes I did…………….

OMG thank you, now I can finally watch Criminal Minds and not giggle just a little bit every time he gets all righteous and shit!

The Heart of the Sisters

In a cocktail shaker filled with ice, combine rye whiskey, wine, liqueur, and lemon juice. Shake well and strain into an ice-filled rocks glass. Squeeze the lemon peel lightly to release its oils and run around the rim of the glass before adding to the cocktail as a garnish.

Make Mine a Meal

How about we make this a meal! Can you share or create a recipe for a dish, appetizer or a dessert to go with your book and to go with that cocktail you shared~

Niel’s One-Eyed Steak with Bloody Shallot Sauce

Ingredients

1 1-pound New York strip steak (about 1-inch thick)

Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper

1 large shallot, minced

3/4 cup boxed red wine

2 to 3 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cubed

1 eye patch

Eye patch and a steak… I can see this, really I can.

Place the eye patch comfortably over whichever eye you choose.

Remove the steak from the refrigerator 30 minutes before cooking. Heat a large heavy-bottomed skillet over medium-high heat. Pat the steak dry and season generously with salt and pepper on all sides. Place the steak, standing up on the strip of fat, in the pan and hold it with tongs until the fat renders and the pan is slick, about 2 minutes.

Place the steak flat in the pan and sear until deep brown on one side, 4 to 5 minutes. Turn and cook on the other side until a thermometer inserted sideways into the thickest part registers 120 degrees for medium-rare, 3 to 4 more minutes. Transfer to a cutting board and let rest 10 minutes. Reserve the drippings in the skillet.

Add the shallot to the drippings and cook over medium heat until golden, about 2 minutes. Add the wine and scrape up any browned bits with a wooden spoon. Bring to a boil and cook until reduced by half and slightly syrupy, about 7 minutes; remove from the heat. Whisk in the butter, one piece at a time, to make a glossy sauce. Add 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper or season to taste. Slice the steak against the grain and serve with the sauce.

CG – FAST and FURIOUS – Don’t pause just answer what comes first to mind

Beer, Wine, Shot Glass and a bottle or perhaps blood? Beer. In a very cold glass. (Honorable mention: Lime Kool-Aid with a bendy straw.)

Coke or Pepsi?Coke. Never Pepsi. And spare me the eye roll, Miss Incredulous Waitress Person, when I tell you I’ll just have water because your establishment doesn’t serve The Real Thing.™

Hell in a Hand basket or by the summoning of Demons?Hand basket. More like a ride that way.

D20 or a D8? D20. Never limit your options.

Killer clown or Clown killer? Killer clown.

Spirits, Demons or Killer Clowns ? (so I am a little obsessed) Again, killer clown, since that’s the only one that’s real.

Zombie Apocalypse or mysterious pandemic? Zombies don’t stand a chance against a killer clown with a chainsaw arm, duct tape, a staff and a hand basket.

By land or by sea or by ass (the kind with four feet, buddy)?You can’t buy sea. You can only buy land. And I’ve never bought… whatever that last one was.

House of Mirrors or House of Horrors?Mirrors. Provided it’s a good hair day.

Learn battle techniques from a viking or a ninja?A ninja killer clown with a chainsaw arm, duct tape, a staff and a hand basket? I’d be goin’ Genghis Khan on your… whatever that last one was.

CG – Huh… that was enlightening… very… ummm ANYWAY – Anything you would like to add… appearances, upcoming releases, where I can find someone to adjust the algorithms for my time machine?

I invite all your lovely followers to keep an eye on my Facebook author page for upcoming appearances and other items of import. I’m currently at work on the follow-up to Mage titled The Book of Sediahm which is slated to be handed into the publisher around the end of the year. And THIS is the only algorithm you’ll ever need.

CG – That was just freaking EVIL… everyone, check out at your own risk –>WARNING

About A. Christopher Drown

A. Christopher Drown is a native of Brunswick, Maine, who currently resides in Memphis. His work has appeared in several magazines and anthologies. The first edition of A Mage of None Magic won the 2010 Darrell Award for Best Novel. His story, Path of an Arrow, received the 2012 Darrell Award for Best Novella. He recently completed his second novel and is at work on The Book of Sediahm, the next book in the Heart of the Sisters series. An award-winning graphic designer, when not slogging away at his trusty Macbook, Pedro, he can be found hiding around a nearby corner waiting to leap out at either of his unsuspecting children.

Myth tells that magic came to be when the fabled gem known as the Heart of the Sisters was shattered by evil gods. The same tale speaks of the Heart being healed one day, unleashing a power that will bring the end of humankind.

While traveling to begin his magical studies, young apprentice Niel finds himself suddenly at the center of the Heart's terrifying legend. Caught in a whirlwind of events that fractures the foundation of everything he's believed, Niel learns his role in the world may be far more important than he ever could have imagined--or ever would have wished.

A Mage of None Magic begins an extraordinary adventure into a perilous land where autocratic magicians manipulate an idle aristocracy, where common academia struggles for acceptance, and where after ages of disregard myth and legend refuse to be ignored any longer.

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2 Comments

Love the interview! And since Aaron does inappropriate Elmo quips and Ethel Merman heavy metal and I do Swedish Chef singing Disney ballads, nineties pop, and eighties metal, there is only one conclusion.